Drinking attachment for beverage cans



1 .1 c. o. BJORK DRINKING ATTACHMENT FOR BEVERAGE CANS Filed Dec. 9, 1940 lNVE/VTOR, Own 0. E/ORK.

ATTORNEY,

Patented Aug. 17, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,327,010 DRINKING ATTACIIATNEgT FOR BEVERAGE 2 Claims.

This invention relates to a drinking attachment for beverage cans.

At the present time in addition to the practice of dispensing beverages and juices in bottles it has become the practice to dispense beverages to the retail trade in sealed cans which are formed either with the usual closed ends bound to the can body by a double seam, and which requires that the end of the can shall be punctured to withdraw the contents therefrom, or cans having a spout closed by some type of friction cap. When using cans of the closed end type, it is usual practice to puncture the end of the can by an especially designed can opener, which forms a triangular opening in the end of the can near the circumferential margin represented by the double seam. In the event that a drinking glass is not available into which the beverage or juice may be poured, it is necessary to drink it from the can through the triangular opening. This is a very unsatisfactory method of procedure, for the reason that the peculiar shape of the hole in the can does not fit the mouth of the drinker, causing the liquid to be wasted or to spill on the clothing of the drinker. It is the principal object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a simple and inexpensive device which may be applied to cans of the type previously described and which would make it possible for a beverage to be readily drunk from a can in the same manner as drinking from a tumbler.

The present invention contemplates the provision of a paper sleeve, upon which suitable advertising matter or other indicia may be placed, and which is normally folded to a collapsed position and may be opened so that a liquid can may be forced into one end of the sleeve to a point where it will form a tight fit therewith and cause a cup portion to occur above the end of the can and from which a beverage may be drunk.

The invention is illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a view in section and elevation showing the application of the present invention to a can.

Fig, 2 is a view in perspective indicating one of the devices with which the present invention is concerned in its collapsed and folded position.

Fig. 3 is an end view showing the top of a container and the sleeve mounted therearound.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, l indicates a can having the usual cylindrical body wall closed at its opposite ends by end caps. The end caps and body wall are united by double seams H and 12. Referring more particularly to Fig. 2 of the drawing, a sleeve device 13 is shown. This is preferably made from a sheet of heavy water-proofed paper folded upon itself and secured together along its marginal edges [4 and Hi. The sheet of paper is cut and secured in a manner to form a tubular wall l6 which is slightly tapered from end to end, the tubular wall thus providing a sleeve which fits over the end of the can l0 carrying the double seam l2. The taper of the wall is such as to insure that the double seam l2 will be tightly wedged into the sleeve when the lower and larger diametered end of the sleeve lies substantially in the plane of the double seam II. It will be recognized that due to the slight stretch in the material from which the sleeve I3 is made that the wall of the sleeve will be drawn tightly around the surface of the double seam I2, as indicated at IT. A length of the wall l6 extends beyond the area H, as indicated at l8, and provides a drinking cup 19, the bottom of which is represented by the end of the can secured by the double seam l2. This end is indicated at 20 in Fig. 3 of the drawing. Here it will be seen that an opening 2| is cut through the end of the can to establish communication with the can and the cup l9. After the can has been perforated at 2| the sleeve l3 may be forced over it and into place, as shown in Figure 1. This will place the cup l9 above the end of the can to receive the liquid from within the can. The can with its sleeve applied may then be grasped in the same manner as holding a tumbler, after which the can and the sleeve may be tilted toward the side adjacent the opening 2|. It will then be quite easy and convenient to drink the contents of the can as it pours into the cup Hi. It will be understood that since these sleeve elements l3 may be folded flat, a large number of them may be held in a relatively small package and may be used as desired. It is also to be pointed out that any sort of display or reading matter may be applied to the outside of the members 13, and this has considerable commercial advantage. After the contents have been drained from the can, the can with the relatively inexpensive sleeve may be thrown away.

It is to be understood that while the sleeve has been described as being formed of paper, it,

may be made of any suitable material, such as thin sheet plastic material, Cellophane and the like. W

It will thus be seen that by the invention here disclosed a convenient sleeve is provided to facilitate in drinking the contents from a can, and that this sleeve may be instantly placed in position without manipulation of any kind other than to force the sleeve onto the perforated end of the can.

While I have shown the preferred form of my invention as now known to me, it will be understood that various changes may be made in combination, construction, and arrangement of parts by those skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit of my invention as claimed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with a can having a cylindrical body and an end wall double seamed therewith whereby a bead of greater diameter than the diameter of the can body will be formed by the double seam at the end of the can, a flexible and stretchable tubular sleeve of a uniform length greater than the height of the can and being of a diameter slightly less than the bead on the can at the point of contact therewith, whereby as the sleeve is drawn onto the can the sleeve will be slightly stretched by the bead to form a liquid seal therewith, the portion of the tubular sleeve projecting beyond said bead forming a continuous circumscribing lip cup into which the liquid content of the can may pour through a perforation in the can end, said tubular sleeve being longitudinally tapered and having a diameter in the plane of contact of the bead with the sleeve whereby the sleeve will fit snugly against the bead, and the end of the sleeve with large diameter will lie substantially in the plane of the bottom of the can and the end of the sleeve 01 small diameter will lie in a plane beyond the top of the can to support the sleeve in a manner to cover the can and provide a cup at the top thereof.

2. A device of the character described adapted to fit over a beverage can to enclose the can and form a continuous circumscribing lip at the end thereof and of uniform height, said device comprising a sheet of flexible material substantially impervious to liquid, said sheet being formed into a frusto-conical tube but having its contiguous longitudinal edges joined together and in a manner to make the diameter of one end of the tube greater than the diameter of the other end of the tube, the said large diameter being greater than the diameter of a container over which it is to be placed, and the small diameter being less than the diameter of the container upon which it is to be placed, whereby the end of the container will fit snugly within the sleeve at a point intermediate said opposite ends, the length of the sleeve between said plane of contact and the large end of the sleeve representing substantially the height of the container and the length of the sleeve between said plane of contact and the small end of the sleeve representing a circumscribing lip of uniform height within which liquid from the end of the container may pour.

CARL O. BJORK. 

